Ajax fell to a late defeat against Liverpool after withstanding immense pressure for the majority of the match.
The work rate and commitment of Alfred Schreuder’s players can’t be questioned, but the team didn’t play as well as they’re capable of, allowing their opponents to control the game from start to finish.
Here’s how we think each player did individually…
Remko Pasveer, 9 – Made eight saves, some of which were excellent, and couldn’t do anything about the Liverpool goals. If not for him, the match would have been over much sooner.
Devyne Rensch, 6 – Made some good tackles and touches but often struggled to contain Luis Diaz.
Jurrien Timber, 7 – Couldv’e done better for the first goal, but made multiple important blocks and interceptions after that, and generally did well in possession.
Calvin Bassey, 6 – Looked nervous early on but grew into the game, making a number of tackles and blocks in the closing stages, although his passing was poor throughout.
Daley Blind, 7 – Dealt with Mo Salah really well for most of the match and created the Ajax goal with a lovely pass. The only blemish on his performance was the big chance he headed just wide.
Edson Alvarez, 6 – Protected his defence well for most of the match, positioning himself well and providing cover for the backline. He could’ve done better with the ball at his feet though.
Steven Berghuis, 6 – Was really good going forward, making a number of lovely passes including the assist for Kudus, but wasn’t great defensively, failing to stop his opposite number Thiago from controlling the match.
Kenneth Taylor, 5 – Struggled to make his mark in midfield, pressing well a few times but not doing much else.
Dusan Tadic, 5 – Got the ball in promising positions a few times but did very little with it, failing to take advantage of the fact that Liverpool were missing Andy Robertson.
Mohammed Kudus, 6 – Scored yet another fantastic goal, producing a wonderful finish, but was unable to do much else after that with Liverpool dominating the game.
Steven Bergwijn, 4 – A really disappointing night for Bergwijn. He was expected to cause real problems for the defensively vulnerable Trent Alexander-Arnold but didn’t so once, barely getting on the ball at all.
Substitutes
Jorge Sanchez, 6
Florian Grillitsch, N/A
Brian Brobbey, N/A
Finley Crebolder
